Paul W. S. Anderson
writes and frequently directs his wife, Milla Jovovich, who stars in the pair's
moneymaking franchise for a fourth time. The actress plays Alice, a heroine
owing her super strength to the Umbrella Corporation's T-virus. Engineered to
create the ultimate soldier, the virus instead turned most of its subjects into
zombies that then escaped the lab and infected nearly everyone on the planet.
In chapter four, Alice
is preoccupied with dismantling the corporation. Alice and her clones (manufactured by
Umbrella in the third installment), attack Umbrella's heavily fortified
underground headquarters. They take out a small army of well-armed soldiers
before Alice
squares off against the film's villain (Shawn Roberts). Sporting a plastic coif
and speaking in a clipped lilt, he injects Alice with a T-virus antidote that strips
away her extraordinary strength. However, her training in martial arts and
weaponry allow Alice
to remain effective. Alice
escapes and is reunited with her friend, Claire Redfield (Ali Larter). The
women join Claire's brother—accused killer Chris Redfield (Wentworth
Miller)—who is holed up at an abandoned Los
Angeles prison along with a handful of survivors.
Fast-moving zombies surround the prison as far as the eye can see, while a
gigantic zombie-troll plods toward the fortress dragging a giant hammer. Other
zombies have developed rasp-like mouths able to chew through rock. Threats from
within prove as perilous as the looming zombies. Jovovich fulfills the film's
action requirements admirably, therefore, had the film been either more
thrilling or more fun, her leaden line delivery would go unnoticed. DVD
features: Filmmaker commentary, Casting Afterlife, The Action, Sneak Peek of
Resident Evil: Damnation, English, French or Spanish language tracks,
widescreen. Blu-ray features same plus: Deleted & Extended Scenes,
Outtakes, Directing Afterlife, Undead Dimension: Resident Evil in 3D, The
Design, The Undead, Gamers of the Afterlife, PS3 Wallpaper Theme, movie IQ sync
and BD-Live providing real-time information on the cast, music and trivia while
watching the movie, Undead Vision: Picture-in-Picture. Blu-ray 3D features same
plus: Film in 3D.

MERANTAU

(2009)

* *1/2 (B-)

Directed by Gareth
Evans

Starring Iko Uwais,
Laurent Buson, Sisca Jessica, Mads Koudal

Magnolia//Rated R//Action//112
minutes

Available on: DVD and
Blu-ray

Indonesia
gives the martial arts genre a swift kick in the behind with the release of
this film set in Jakarta
and focused on the Silat form. Welsh writer-director Gareth Evans became
interested in featuring the fighting style after working on a documentary that
introduced him to Silat practitioner Iko Uwais. Villager Yuda (Iko) is a young
man leaving home for his merantau, a ritual that requires him to make it on his
own in the big city. Yuda attempts to rescue a boy and his elder sister pursued
by human traffickers, necessitating many a lopsided confrontation that finds
smallish Yuda up to the challenge. Little if any wirework is used in displaying
Silat battles to the max in this thinly plotted yarn. The optional English dub
allows us to fully appreciate the minting of new action star Iko Uwais, as he
makes his bones in multiple trials by fire. DVD or Blu-ray features: deleted
scenes, Bloopers, Making-of featurette, Video Production Journal, Bamboo Pole
Stunt, Storyboard to Screen Fight Comparison, International Trailer, English or
Indonesian language tracks, Spanish subtitles, widescreen.

Joel Schumacher directs
a clutch of appealing young people in a bleak film that wants to be Kids for an older, more privileged set.
Those interested in such fare might check out the 1995 Kids, which follows a young girl tripping from one high to the next
while taking increasingly dangerous risks. Twelve's
uninspired protagonist is White Mike (Crawford), a college dropout turned
marijuana dealer. He isn't a substance abuser, but he lies to his only friend
(Emma Roberts) and ignores his family because he's wallowing in grief over his
mother's death last year. Kiefer Sutherland narrates, lifting a plethora of
poetically arranged, redundant passages from Nick McDonell's novel, a story
written when the author was just 17. This pointless tale slowly and painfully
wends its way toward a tragic ending that spills over with gratuitous violence.
DVD or Blu-ray features: English language tracks, Spanish or French subtitles,
widescreen.

Martin Booth adapts his
1990 novel A Very Private Gentleman
for the screen, but the story ultimately distorts its anti-hero into a reformed
criminal seeking redemption. George Clooney leads an international cast as
Jack, an expatriate holed up in a remote Italian village while constructing a
high-powered weapon for his ruthless employer (Leysen). Mathilde (Reuten)
arrives to ensure Jack completes the job, but in the process Jack falls for a
local prostitute (Placido). Learning Swedish hitmen are gunning for him, Jack
must decide whether to stand and fight, or flee. DVD or Blu-ray features:
director commentary, deleted scenes, Making of featurette, English, French or
Spanish language tracks, widescreen.

More romance than
horror, this retitled release documents a man's obsession with the tragic death
of his high school sweetheart, a decade earlier. Despite his best friend's
(Lindberg) urging that Josh (Fehr) move on, the 28-year-old still lives with
his parents and works at the pizza parlor that employed him at the time of his
girlfriend's death. When he meets a young woman exhibiting an uncanny
resemblance to his deceased love, Josh is predictably smitten. However, the
price of being with her may be too high, even for Josh. DVD features: Trailers,
English language tracks, Spanish subtitles, widescreen.

LEGENDARY ASSASSIN

(2008)

Directed by Li Chung
Chi, Wu Jing

Starring Wu Jing,
Celina Jade

Lionsgate//Rated
R//Action//89 minutes

Available on: DVD

Romantic sparks fly
after assassin Bo Tong Lam (Jing), defends a police woman (Jade) being attacked
by local thugs. The pair is happily flirting when associates of a crime lord
killed by Lam arrive, apparently planning to kick him to death. Kung Fooey fans
are rewarded by dozens of martial arts beat downs, though purists may object to
wirework that detracts from Jing's native skills. DVD features: Making-of
featurette, Inside the characters, Trailer gallery, English or Cantonese
language tracks, Spanish subtitles, widescreen.

This lessor Showtime
vehicle casts Toni Collette as Tara, a wife and mother suffering from split
personality disorder. Her alter egos include an angry teenager, an idealized
'50s housewife, and a redneck truck driver, all of whom interfere with Tara's domestic life and her efforts to run an interior
design business. Executive produced by Steven Spielberg and penned by Diablo
Cody of Juno fame, the writer's
trash-loving wit lacks sufficient range to carry this episodic format. 2-Disc
DVD features: Short Interviews with the Cast, Cast Bios, English or Spanish
language tracks, widescreen.

BOB THE BUILDER: THE GOLDEN HAMMER

(2010)

Lyons/HIT
Entertainment//Not Rated//Family//60 minutes

Available on: DVD

Bob the Builder
characters, Spud and Scrambler, embark on a seafaring adventure to find Pirate
Brickbeard and his lost Golden Hammer, a prize they hope to obtain for Bob. DVD
features: free child's ticket to Legoland California and the Sea Life Carlsbad
Aquarium, English language tracks, Spanish subtitles, widescreen.

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